Sas van Gent is a

town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

in the Netherlands. It is located in the Dutch province of

Zeeland Zeeland (; ), historically known in English by the Endonym and exonym, exonym Zealand, is the westernmost and least populous province of the Netherlands. The province, located in the southwest of the country, borders North Brabant to the east ...

. It is a part of the municipality of

Terneuzen Terneuzen () is a city and municipality in the southwestern Netherlands, in the province of Zeeland, in the middle of Zeelandic Flanders. With almost 55,000 inhabitants, it is the most populous municipality of Zeeland. History First mentione ...

and lies about 30 km south of

Vlissingen Vlissingen (; ) is a Municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality and a city in the southwestern Netherlands on the island of Walcheren. With its strategic location between the Scheldt river and the North Sea, Vlissingen has been an importan ...

on the border with

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

. The Ghent–Terneuzen Canal passes through Sas van Gent, and at that point there was a

lock Lock(s) or Locked may refer to: Common meanings *Lock and key, a mechanical device used to secure items of importance *Lock (water navigation), a device for boats to transit between different levels of water, as in a canal Arts and entertainme ...

in the canal. The name of the village, ''Sas van Gent'', means ''sluice of Ghent'', as it sits just north of the Belgian city of Ghent.

History

Sas van Gent is a border fortress which was founded in 1547 when the city of

Ghent Ghent ( ; ; historically known as ''Gaunt'' in English) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of the Provinces of Belgium, province ...

received permission from

Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor Charles V (24 February 1500 – 21 September 1558) was Holy Roman Emperor and Archduke of Austria from 1519 to 1556, King of Spain (as Charles I) from 1516 to 1556, and Lord of the Netherlands as titular Duke of Burgundy (as Charles II) ...

to dig a canal to the

Westerschelde The Western Scheldt ( ), in the province of Zeeland in the southwestern Netherlands, is the estuary of the Scheldt river. This river once had several estuaries, but the others are now disconnected from the Scheldt, leaving the Westerschelde as ...

. Between 1551 and 1563, a lock was constructed north of Zelzate which was subsequently fortified. In 1583, it was captured by Spanish troops. In 1644, it was conquered by

Frederick Henry, Prince of Orange Frederick Henry (; 29 January 1584 – 14 March 1647) was the sovereign prince of Orange and stadtholder of Holland, Zeeland, Utrecht, Guelders, and Overijssel in the Dutch Republic from his older half-brother's death on 23 April 1625 until his ...

and became part of the

Dutch Republic The United Provinces of the Netherlands, commonly referred to in historiography as the Dutch Republic, was a confederation that existed from 1579 until the Batavian Revolution in 1795. It was a predecessor state of the present-day Netherlands ...

. The city was attacked by the French in 1672 but could not be taken. The French returned in 1747, and conquered the city. Between 1825 and 1827, the Ghent–Terneuzen Canal was dug, and a side canal was dug to Sas van Gent between 1882 and 1885. The Catholic Assumption of Mary church is a three-aisled basilica like church built between 1891 and 1892 and designed by Joseph Cuypers. The church is a replacement of its 1739 predecessor. Sas van Gent was home to 854 people in 1840. In 1869, a railway station opened on the

to Ghent railway line. The line was closed in 1939, and the building was demolished in 1967. The city started to industrialize in the late 19th century. As the rest of Zeeland did not have enough fresh water for sugar production, Sas van Gent got two beet sugar factories. The first was the NV Zeeuwsche Beetwortelsuikerfabriek founded in 1872. The other was a cooperative; the Eerste Nederlandsche Coöperatieve Beetwortelsuikerfabriek (ENCBS). A museum dedicated to the industrial heritage is located in the warehouses of the former ENCBS, which closed down in 1989. The other sugar factory has been closed in 1986. Sas van Gent was a separate municipality until 2003, when it was merged with

. The former municipality covered an area of 63.65 km² (of which 3.02 km² water). The former municipality of Sas van Gent also included the following towns, villages and townships:

Philippine The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

, Westdorpe, Zandstraat. All are now part of

Gallery

File:Terneuzen-Sas van Gent, de Maria Hemelvaartkerk RM509986 IMG 6700 2023-06-07 12.45.jpg, Church: the Maria Hemelvaartkerk File:Sas van Gent - Nederlands Hervormde Kerk 1.jpg, Dutch Reformed church File:Sas van Gent - Kiosk 1.jpg, Bandstand File:Industrieel Museum Zeeland.jpg, Industrial museum

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sas Van Gent Municipalities of the Netherlands disestablished in 2003 Populated places in Zeeland Former municipalities of Zeeland Zeelandic Flanders Terneuzen 1547 establishments in the Holy Roman Empire